Various questions concerning the difference between the ministries and doctrine of Peter and Paul (Part 1)
Question #1
- So, is Peter & the 11 were really preaching an earthly kingdom when Jesus wasn’t here?
The statement Jesus used in Lk.17:20 in answering the Pharisees is that the kingdom of God was ‘within’ Israel, or ‘amongst’ them at that moment. To those who could discern it, the King was there in their midst. At this time, during Jesus earthly ministry, the kingdom would not come in a physical way, as it would come at His second coming, and demand the attention of the world. The first advent of Jesus was not yet to physically save Israel, but rather to prophetically announce and prepare Israel for the imminency of the Kingdom and ratify the New Covenant. It was a work of faith.
After Jesus ascended, the early Acts church continued the work that Jesus started; to preach and prepare Israel for the imminency of their Kingdom. The physical kingdom had not yet arrived, but they were fully expecting it when Jesus came back. See Acts 1:6.
Question #2
- Below in regard to Matthew 25:34 in context, this reads like the event of the Great white Throne Judgment, because of verse 40 in relation to verse 31.
Matthew 25:31-46 is not the Great White throne judgement. This White throne judgement occurs after the 1000-year (Millennial) Kingdom of Christs rule. The judgement in Matt.25 is the “Sheep and Goats” judgement which is upon the Gentiles at the end of the 7-year Tribulation. After Jesus has destroyed the armies of the Antichrist in Armageddon, this judgement occurs to determine who of the Gentiles will enter the Millennial Kingdom. This Gentiles who supported Israel (Jews) during the tribulation would find justification to enter the Kingdom. Conversely, those Gentiles who did not support Israel in the tribulation would be cast into the fire. The description of support for Israel that Jesus uses in this passage is clear.
Question #3
- As for the charge against Paul you are only assuming his being a blasphemer is in relation to the Holy Ghost.
Paul’s blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (as in 1 Timothy 1:13) is the correct context and fits the events as what was happening with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Clearly, Paul, as with much of Israel, rejected the Holy Spirit and this constituted the unforgiveable sin. During the period, when God's Holy Spirit was being poured out at Pentecost, it was the end of grace for each unbelieving Jew, and most of the Jewish nation.
You mention that 1 Timothy 1:13 indicates that although Paul blasphemed against the Holy Spirit, he was forgiven of that charge after he came to believe in Jesus Christ. Paul did get saved and the unforgiveable sin appears to have been forgiven, but there is something important to understand. How could Paul escape this verdict?
God is no man that He should lie. In order for God to save Saul, He could not go against His Word. There was no way that Saul could be forgiven in the current program in which he lived. The law program was in full swing and Paul was as guilty as they come! But our God is great, our God is sovereign and our God is just and full of wisdom. God would use Saul as the instrument to start a whole NEW program, and you guessed it, God would save Saul as the first person into this new dispensation of grace. Paul, as the first member into this grace age could now receive mercy under the program that was not bound by the laws of the former. God saved Paul without going against His own Word.
Saul did commit the unforgivable sin and in the law dispensation he would always be found guilty, but in Gods wisdom and grace, He started a new dispensation through Paul and saved and acquitted him in this new program in which the law could not accuse him. God had a plan for Paul and made him the first in a new pattern that would proclaim God's grace for all who followed.
Have a look at this verse that confirms clearly what I've just written about. Paul writes to Timothy and says,
1 Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.
Paul continues writing to Timothy,
1 Timothy 1:16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.
Question #4
- Peter acknowledges the scriptures and the epistles of Paul as on the same level as scripture. All of this indicated that the scriptures in the O.T. & the N.T. , including the gospels, were available for the early church back then for Paul to write about this.
Before Paul, Israel had the scriptures of the prophets. There was certainly no limit to what God had already revealed to Jews with regards to their kingdom and their future inheritance. However, since nothing of the grace doctrine (of Paul) was available even up to mid-Acts, no human being knew about the meaning of the cross of Christ and of God’s grace through the cross and Christ’s resurrection. This only came by the writing of Paul from about 50AD onwards.
Naturally once Paul started revealing the mystery doctrine, word spread of this new message. One must also understand that the gospel of the Kingdom and the imminency of the Kingdom was falling through the cracks at this time. While Paul’s ministry was enlarging, the ministry of the 12 apostles was diminishing. This came to its pinnacle at the Jerusalem council meeting in 48AD (Acts 15). Peter closed this program by saying in Acts 15:11 that Jews would now be saved in like manner as Gentiles. Effectively, Peter was saying Jews would be saved by the grace gospel that Paul preached. While the Kingdom gospel was all about the identity of Jesus as the Messiah and King, the grace gospel focused on the cross and of grace through the blood of Christ. From this point in Acts 15 onwards, we hear nothing more of Peter and the 11 preaching the kingdom message. Their ‘great’ commission was suspended and the ‘Little Flock’ of believing Jews was suspended too, since no more preaching of the Kingdom took place. Jews were now being saved by Paul’s grace gospel and were being added to the Body of Christ, made up of all people of all nations and tongues.
Question #5
- History may testify that Peter & the 11 along with Paul did not complete the Bible’s canon, but they are only assuming that based on the earliest “surviving” manuscripts, but scripture tells otherwise.
The reference I added in my image does not argue the fact of who wrote the last words into our current canon of scripture. That I will leave for the scholars and archaeologists to fight about. What I can be sure of and what I was relaying in the image is that Paul fulfilled the Word of God in terms of what God revels to us. So, whether Paul (with 2 Timothy) or John (with revelation) wrote the last words is not the issue. What is true is that Paul’s mystery doctrine was the last revelation that God give to humanity. The contents of Revelation is prophetic. The contents of Paul’s epistles are a completely new revelation of mystery that was never uttered by God until Paul. Thus, from a revelational point of view, Paul’s mystery doctrine closed the canon of scripture, because nothing newer is revealed by God to humanity after the mystery doctrine.
Question #6
- Again, I disagree with there being two different gospels because it would be impossible for Paul to get that right hand of fellowship with Cephas (Peter), John., and James and yet had written this earlier before mentioning that fellowship. So, there is only one gospel as that gospel of the kingdom is the gospel of grace.
The right hand of fellowship was the agreement of the apostles at the Jerusalem council in 48AD. Peter and the 11 would go back to the ‘Little Flock’ church at Jerusalem and continue to minister to these and maintain the current group of members. However, the kingdom gospel would no more be preached as Jews would now be saved as Gentiles, under the grace gospel, and be added to the church known as the Body of Christ. Paul’s gospel was now the only gospel to preach, and this is why the 12 resigned their commission to Paul. There has always been a BIG difference between the two gospels. One was concerning the imminent Kingdom, which was preached to Jews ONLY, and focused on the identity of Jesus as the Messiah and King of that kingdom. No focus was ever given to the cross as this was a point of embarrassment to the Jews, Peter saying that they killed their Messiah. The other was concerning the cross in which Paul boasted. This gospel was preached to ALL men of all nations and focussed on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus for salvation. This gospel was only revealed to Paul after his conversion. If this is the case, how could the Jesus, and the 12 be preaching what Paul preached before God even revealed this truth to Paul. One does not need scripture to prove this as this only requires logic and a simple timeline of events.
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